Company is ‘putting finishing touches’

Ever since the furor over GTX 970’s specs first erupted last month, AMD has been having plenty of fun rubbing salt into Nvidia’s self-inflicted wounds, reminding GTX 970 owners how Nvidia lied to them and asking those interested in getting a “real video card at a decent price” to go for one of its products instead. Seemingly convinced by the sales pitch, a former GTX 970 owner from Down Under recently took to AMD’s Facebook page to know about the odds of either the R9 390x or R9 380x making it to the market in time for GTA V’s PC release.

SMPS chip to blame

The Raspberry Pi 2 credit card-sized computer that went on sale a week back has been a talking point ever since. Initially, it was all about its many improvements over the first-gen Pi and the fact that it will eventually be to run a free version of Windows 10. Now, however, the focus (pun intended) has turned to its strange behavior when showered in xenon flash.

Current version of Project Spartan is said to be only marginally better than IE11 in HTML5 compliance

When it officially unveiled the Project Spartan (codename) browser last month, Microsoft said it would not be part of “our first few Insider builds.” It is hard to say how much longer we might have to wait for the first publicly available Windows 10 preview build with Project Spartan, but one thing is for sure: leaks, whether of entire builds or images therefrom, are never far off.

The new low-level API easily outperforms DX11 in Star Swarm benchmark

The latest preview build of Windows 10 includes DirectX 12 and supports a new graphics driver model in the form of Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) 2.0. Lest you take the new graphic driver architecture lightly, know that this is the most significant WDDM update yet and holds the key to enabling DX12. In fact, its dependence on the hard-to-backport WDDM 2.0 — backporting would require kernel-level changes — is one of the chief reasons DX12 won’t be coming to Windows 8.1/8 and Windows 7. If you plan to stick to your current OS even when Windows 10 is available later this year, we have something that may force you to reconsider your decision.

Treating users like idiots never works

I've written about the demise of Windows RT on more than one occasion over the course of the last couple of weeks, and in the comments section of both articles, there's mention of Microsoft Bob. Prior to those incidents, it had been a long time since I've seen anyone bring it up. References to Microsoft Bob usually only manifest when talking about forgettable Windows releases, like ME, Vista (pre-SP1), and RT. However, Microsoft Bob wasn't actually a Windows version, it was a patronizing GUI that foreshadowed Windows RT's demise. Never heard of it? Let's take a trip back in time.

Excuse me while I barf

There are some exciting things happening in the field of virtual reality. The bigger ones include devices like the Oculus Rift, Microsoft HoloLens, and Samsung Gear VR, but if you stop and read the list of possible side effects, it raises some concern that VR can become a mainstream thing. For example, Samsung tells users they should stop using its Gear VR if they experience certain symptoms.

Now admins can disable a stolen Chromebook

Well, this was a long time coming. As Chromebooks grow in popularity, so does the risk of one being stolen -- it's just a numbers game, really. It sucks if that happens, but on the bright side, Google has issued an update that will finally allow admins to place lost or stolen Chrome OS devices in a disabled state. They can flip the switch right from their web-based management console.

Hackers have a new security hole to go phishing in

If you use Internet Explorer 11, be aware that researchers have discovered a zero-day vulnerability that could allow attackers to change content on domains remotely. The exploit could also allow hackers to inject malicious content in browsers, steal personal data, and track your online movements. That's the bad news. And the good? You're unlikely to fall prey to such an attack, according to Microsoft.

The other side of the argument

I haven't spoken with every individual at Maximum PC about net neutrality and asked what their stances all, though I'm fairly confident we all agree it's a good thing. Certainly our new Editor-in-Chief Tuan Nguyen does, as evidenced by his recent articles on the topic here and here. And obviously so does Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler, who recently proposed reclassifying the Internet as a public utility. But not everyone does. Among the comments to some of the articles we've posted on the subject are arguments opposed to treating the Internet like a public utility, which would thereby give the government increased oversight. The CTIA also opposes reclassifying the Internet as such, but I'm not sure their video on the topic will do them any favors.

Customer support done the right way

Gabe Newell's a busy man. It comes with the territory of managing Valve, a massive company with billions of dollars in equity. He's also personable and surprisingly accessible for someone in his position, as a Steam user in need of support recently found out. After submitting a support request to Steam and not receiving a response in a week's time, the user figured he had nothing to lose and everything to gain by contacting Newell himself. He was right.